Author Archives: janishaag

I sat, extended an arm behindme to the roll on the wall, whichspun freely but did not releasethe dangling end that makes it easy to grab and pull and tugoff as many squares as necessary.Instantly, deep in my brain,I heard … Continue reading →

Blue sky perfect,whispers of clouds,fall hinting at its arrivalunder a setting quarter moon, no sign of the predicted coming stormallegedly headed our way this afternoon. Some days are like this.Call it deception or miracle. Walking the neighborhood I call minein … Continue reading →

(for the team of Drain Time plumbers) Luis behind the fridge,Leo in the front bathroom,each using a drill that sings a distinct seriesof notes, rising and fallingin mechanical melody. “It’s the speeds changing,”Luis says, but I hear itas the plumbers’ … Continue reading →

(for Ryan Montgomery on his birthday) You will likely not remember,but it was one of your best linesever, especially clever for your seven-year-old self,who, after I cut your hair, atyour mother’s request, and I asked only for a kissin return, … Continue reading →

When, after nine months gestation,the cat you brought home fromyour mother’s house after she dieddecides that you are, for better or worse,his person— though he still runs when you walkthrough the house, but will come to youwhen you sit on … Continue reading →

(for World Inclusion Day, Oct. 10) Remember that pale blue dot,that tiny speck of light in the darkphotographed by Voyager 1beyond Neptune, some 3.7billion miles from the sun? When mission managersdirected the little spacecraftto turn and look over itsaluminum/titanium shouldertoward … Continue reading →

(for Rebecca) You know, it occurs to methat I haven’t said to you,dear niece, how sorry I am for the passageof your dear mama from lifeinto mystery, feeling my own sorrowswirled with gratitude forthe way she embraced me as she … Continue reading →

Beneath the floorboards of this old housea young man named Nick, a genius with pipesand fittings, has wedged his slender self between the dirt on which the foundation restsand the old redwood planks that form its base.He’s a spelunker, his … Continue reading →

I have her Porsche,a cookie jar versionwith its wild paint job, and though, as a teen,I heard her “Bobby McGee”growl on the radio, I didn’t resonate withthis Janis who spelledher name like mine until after she was gone.But the car—eventuallyI, … Continue reading →

(for Donna and Eric Just’s41st wedding anniversary) ••• Cherishing is love with its sleeves rolled up.—Gregory Boyle You two make it look easy,always have, for four decadesplus a year now. And while the rest of us don’t see allthe behind-the-scenesgoings-on, … Continue reading →